DOGE's Chances Are Slim, but It Might Be Our Only Hope
Congress and the president show no interest in cutting government. Maybe outsiders can get it done.
Big Government
Abolish the FDA
Many seriously ill people die waiting for the FDA to approve drugs that regulators in other advanced countries have already approved.
Abolish the TSA
The agency has not made air travel safer but it has made it costlier and more time-consuming to fly.
Abolish the NSA and CIA
Ending these unaccountable agencies would safeguard civil liberties and improve intelligence gathering.
Abolish the Federal Alcohol Tax and Regulation System
The states already overregulate alcohol. There's no need for a federal layer of red tape.
Abolish the Department of Education
The federal government furnishes a relatively tiny amount of K-12 funding—but the feds need relatively little money to exert power.
Abolish Obamacare
The Affordable Care Act has become a broken welfare program for people who don't need it.
Abolish the Small Business Administration
Like all government perks, SBA lending creates unseen victims.
Abolish Antitrust Law
Having a large market share may just mean that a company is really good at what it does.
Abolish FOIA
FOIA has no teeth and bureaucrats abuse its exemptions. Just redact and release every federal workers' emails instead.
Abolish the EPA
Climate change is a serious environmental concern, but it is not clear how the EPA helps.
Abolish the DEA
The DEA's attempts to enforce the nation's drug laws have been a resounding failure by pretty much any measure.
Abolish the Federal Minimum Wage
There is a "virtual consensus" among economists that the minimum wage puts people out of work.
Abolish Borders
If government-drawn lines within your country don't possess some sort of moral magic that voids your rights, why would government-drawn lines between countries?
Abolish the National Park Service
Revising how America's most beautiful public lands are protected would create more ways for Americans to interact with some of the best parts of the country.
Abolish Social Security
Stop robbing poor, hard-working Peter to pay well-off, retired Paul.
Abolish Federal Student Loans
Easily accessible student loans give colleges an incentive to raise tuition.
Abolish ICE
The federal immigration agency disrupts communities and families, for no good.
Abolish the Department of Transportation
When money comes down from the DOT, it has copious strings attached to it—strings that make infrastructure more expensive and less useful.
Abolish the Army
"Standing armies are dangerous to liberty," Alexander Hamilton wrote in Federalist No. 29.
Abolish the IRS—and the Income Tax Too
Americans spent an estimated $133 billion and 6.5 billion hours filing their tax returns in 2024.
Want To Lower the Political Temperature? Make the Presidency Less Important
Congress needs to reassert its powers and bring the imperial presidency back down to earth.
The Next President Should Abolish Everything
In the Abolish Everything issue, Reason writers make the case for ending the Fed, the Army, Social Security, and everything else.
The Alarmingly High, Frustratingly Unknown Stakes of Election 2024
We don't know how Kamala Harris would wield her awesome power, and we don't know how the rule of law would constrain Donald Trump.
Government Goons Murder Internet-Famous Squirrel
Peanut the Squirrel charmed a large internet audience that helped fund an animal sanctuary. Then the government seized him.
Doctor Fighting To Break Certificate of Need Barrier in North Carolina
The Institute for Justice partners with an independent eye doctor to challenge state regulations that protect hospital monopolies and restrict patient access.
Smaller Government Can Protect Against a Vengeful President
Whether through policy or prosecution, the president's ability to punish his political enemies should be sharply constrained.
Are Books and Brains Weapons? The U.S. Government Thinks So.
Sending user manuals, algorithms, and lines of code can be legally equivalent to exporting bombs.
Napa's Wineries Battle Local Restrictions
In the heart of California Wine Country, rigid local rules are choking small businesses and stifling growth
The Best of Reason: Big Pot vs. Big Government in Florida
Mom-and-pop marijuana operations do not exist in Florida. That's by design.
Archaic Federal Law Keeps Alaskans From Using Abundant Natural Gas Reserves
The Jones Act makes the North Slope’s resources inaccessible to the state’s energy-starved residents.
Big Pot vs. Big Government in Florida
Mom-and-pop marijuana operations do not exist in Florida. That's by design.
The Justice Department's Proposals for Breaking Up Google's Dominance Won't Work
But consumers will pay a price.
Home Kitchens Are Under Attack by Regulators
Americans are turning to home-cooked meals, but state regulators are making it harder for small food businesses to survive.
Americans Grow Increasingly Dependent on Government Payments
Many citizens of the land of the free are hooked on government checks.
Held Hostage Overseas? The IRS Wants Your Back Taxes.
The IRS fines hostages for taxes they couldn't pay while they were detained. A bill in Congress is trying to fix this.
Will SCOTUS Take on New York's Latest Eminent Domain Scam?
Two brothers are asking the Supreme Court to stop their town from using eminent domain to steal their land for an empty field.
Trump Targeted Again Amid Rising Tide of Political Violence
Politicians and partisan fanatics spur each other to extremes in what they see as a struggle against evil.
How Much Will the Major Presidential Candidates Steal From You?
Neither Harris nor Trump has a plan to address national debt, but they dramatically differ on taxation.
The Supreme Court Reined in Federal Regulators. What Happens Now?
The Court this year reversed Chevron, a decades-old precedent giving bureaucrats deference over judges when the law is ambiguous.
Why Trump's Child Care Policy Incoherence Matters
If the Republican Party's presidential candidate can't articulate a supply-side alternative to costly Democratic proposals, then government will get bigger.
Wait, Democrats Now Say They Love Freedom?
Plus: Does the government own too much land in Utah? And the latest response to Friends star Matthew Perry’s drug overdose death.
Trump and Harris' Economic Plans Are Depressingly Similar
Both campaigns represent variations on a theme of big, fiscally irresponsible, hyper-interventionist government.
Democrats Aren't the Freedom Party
Plus: RFK Jr.'s exit, anti-Israel protesters at the DNC, and more...
